Oil filter



April 17, 1956 o. P. sA'rHER 2,742,155

OIL FILTER Filed Nov. l5, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet l AGENT April 1.7, 1956 o. P. sATHl-:R 2,742,155

INVEN YOP SAT R www* AGENT UnitedStates PatentfO i :..ApplicationiNoYember 15, `1951,'Serial No. 256,561

Thisainvention relates. to'oil .filters andhas special` referenceto means `for insuring thorough :filtering of oil.

I 'Large'` commercial-vehicles, such as `heavy-duty trucks, buses and the dike, are expected. to travel many thousands offmiles before they are :replaced or evenbeforethey must-undergo a major overhaul.'` Proper lubrication plays a--large partin-lmaking thispossible, asit is-Qwell known that proper lubricationprevents vundue wear. `It is generallyaccepted thatoilwill-not Wearrout -or Loutgrow its usefulness-for a considerable lengthYV ofytime; however, thegoiAl-will pick. up dirt whichmust be removed therefrom-l to. preventits'causing wear anddamage to y'the `workingzparts ottheevehicle. :Thus the;useof -oil ii-lters has developed to insure clean oil yfor proper lubrication. ;If anJnadequate filter isrused, costly repair, and-overhaul Vwill result. v f .:It.has.been :found that; among-oil'tilter.devicesjin commonuse, so-called.5fthrow-away .filter cartridges? are' quite expensivestouse, and; `the:.so-zallecl f. repackable .filter 'cartridgesarenot eicientinY their desired functioning.

This ineliiciency is due, mainly/...because fthelter material packed in the .cartridge isfnot .packed :firmlyA enoughv and fffchanneling `develops. therein;A that is, V.because `of the/loosenessor.insuiciency of tilter=material inzthe cartridge,.the.-oil.(which,as` is wellknown, isvunder pressure in.ithel.ilter.,device)- forces channels. or.-.passageways through the materialalong, which ,oilr may` pass freely through the .filter material,.without obtaining any benelit therefrom.- ",Theoil.merelypasses through. ther filter device with little, if any, iltering. action takingplace.- `For this reason, therehas `been no great commercialsuccess inV reriackable.` filter .cartridges even though theyl,arep. le`ss expensive than..throw-avvay4 cartridges.

,It'is, therefore, one-.of the. principal-.objects V,of this .K invention to provide, a...1lt`er .cartridge which may be repacked Ito take .advantage of 4lower l.costs ofsthisjtype offilten'yetfwhich will prevent. channels fr0m;develop ing in th filter material even if. thematerial is notpacked firmly o'i" if an insutiicient quantity oftiltenmaterial is use d.

.Y A moref specii'c'objec'tisftoprovide alter cartridge which is of such constructionlthat. the mass sofiilter, materialwithin the cartridge fis maintained :under suilicient pressure at all times during the goperation.thereof'within 2,742,155 l'tatented PI- 2. wherebya yportion -ofsaid cylinder may becaused to move inwardly bythe higher` oil presure tomaintainsaid iilter materialin its desired'con'ipressedV state, and thereby prevent oil from passing throught saidmaterial and into said vtubular member without havingbeen filtered.

Another. object is to. provide a filter?` housing for cooperative use fwith-the filter cartridge in its; desired operation. I

- Theseand `other objects andadvantages ofthe-invention: will lbecome more j apparent- Y as the `description proceeds.

Inv the accompanying ldrawing forming apart -orf'this application: l

Figure 1` is a central vertical sectional viewqof `an oil filter made in accordance with my invention'ready Vfor installation toflter oil or the'like.

Figure 21 is a reduced sideelevational viewl of-fthe'tilter devicewith parts broken away to illustrate .the operation thereof.

. Figure 3 is a top plan view of the filter cartridge.

Figure 41isan enlarged fragme'ntalY sectionalview `of y the oilseal arrangement ffor the -movableclosure device for theoil cylinder. l

L Inmy; co-pending'y application for- Patent Serial Number 100,236 tiled Junez20,1;1949,.fof:which the present application is acontinuation-in-part, now Patent No.. 2,614,694,

- rIhavc shownarepackable oiletlter. cartridgei In the ;drawingsnthe reference numeral 1 indicates the housing or; casingiofan; oiltilter, the housingpreferably beingcylijndrical, as shown', and having.one.c1os'ed end andone opent end. .Centrally of;l the .closed-'end of-the i housing, Ihaveprovided a boss Zhaving an axialbore lwhich the llter is attached.

i The, boss V2 preferably extends into-the housing hslightlyv to` provide amachinedseat dior-the oil filtencantridge which is installedA and lcarried fwithinthe, housing. Thecartridge,forthetilter is preferably.oftheirepackabletypaand..comprises abase el which vhas a machined seat 8.tonengagethe` seat 6 toprevent oilf frornyleaking therebetween. ,.Ofrour'se, agasket; could hetusedibetween `the seats 6 and 8 for this purposeshowever, the machined seats are` preferred,.21s thiseliminatesthepossibility of poor l filteringooil if amechanioshould.-happenvtoyfogetto an oiltilter housing toprevet channeling and,to.insure proper'ltering action onfall oillpassing r.thrnughfthe lter. s s

'Another such object is to}provide alter `cartridge having l a` cylindricalv body `portion to, receive.. filter 4 materialgthe outer surface of the ,cylinder being provided with many/.openings spaced thereabout to pennit oil to ,passf therethrough, and a tubular. memberexte'ndingcaxially throughthe cylinder, the tubularmember ,having Ie1a tively few. openings, as comparedtosaid.cylinderabody,

through iwliichloil may pass whereby swhen saidtcartridge` is in operation withinanoil t1terho using,the oilfpresf sureadjacent saidY tubular memberuwill .belesstthan the oil pressure'at theouter walls ,and-ends ofgsaidfcylinder.

install `the .requiredggaskeh A ;tubu .lar,.rnemher. 9; is` mounted centrallyof the `base .lrto extend perpendicularly the`re to,.;thev memberV Qbeingfof larger `.diameter-than the'rod 5 whereby itmaysurround therodwhenxthe car-v tridge is in`place in the housing. ,Ihernern'ber 2, is proprovide afguide and a snug mounting' on the rod Skofthe member 9. i As shown, the tube9 his 'shorter than the rod 5 and Vextends to l'closely adjacentI theupperendtof the housingl, the purposeiof which will becomel appar- -f abundance Pof perforationsfor. openings -212-spaeed abouti substantially the entire area of its walls to permit oil within the housing to pass from the housing into the cartridge body to be filtered by the ltering medium or material 13 which normally lls the cartridge body, the body 11 and base 7 providing a container for the material 13. The tubular member 9 is provided with small openings 14 through its walls to permit filtered oil to pass into the chamber or space 15 between the tube 9 and the rod 5, after which the oil will pass through the opening O and the oil outlet it will be noted in Fig. 1, that the openings 14 in tubular member 9 are less in number than openings 12 in tubular member 11.

This construction materially aids in the creation of the necessary differential oil pressure more fully described hereinafter.

An oil inlet 16 is provided to supply oil under pressure into the housing 1 whereby the oil is forced through the filtering material 13 before it can leave the ilter housing via the oil'outlet 3.

A cover 17 is provided to close the open end of the housing 1, the cover having an annular groove 13 around its outer margin into which the open end 19 of the casing 1 iits. The groove 18 has a gasket or seal 20 therein to engage the end 19 of the housing and provide an oil tight seal when the cover is installed. As shown, the cover has an axial opening 21 therethrough through which the outwardly extending end of the rod extends, said outer end being threaded as at 22 to receive the wing nut 23 which clamps the cover firmly in place.

It is to Abe noted that the cover V17 has an annular machined seat 24 surrounding the axial opening 21 which engages the upper end of the tubular member 9 and thereby clamps the cartridge rmly in place in the housing 1, forcing the seats 6 and 8 lirmly together, and forming an oil tight seal at each end of the tubular member 9. Also, it is to be noted that the tightening of the wing nut compresses the seal or gasket 20 so that an oil tight seal is obtained around the cover simultaneously with the seating of the cartridge, whereby oil pressure may be obtained and maintained in the housing 1.

As may be seen from the drawing, the lter material 13 isfcontained ywithin the body of the lter cartridge which is of rigid construction as far as the description has proceeded. However, I have provided means for a portion of the cartridge body to move and be moved inwardly as required to compress the filter material and prevent channels from forming therein.

As shown in the drawings, the above mentioned means comprises a cap 25 which is slightly smaller in size than the opening in the end of the body 12 of the lter cartridge, whereby the cap will readily fit into the body 12 andmay move longitudinally thereof. The cap 25 formsV a part of the filter cartridge and has an axial hole 26 therethrough whereby the cap may be carried on the tubular member 9 to form a closure-like end member for Athe cartridge body, the hole being of such character as to maintain the cap at substantially right angles to the tube.

In operation, the body 12 of the lter is packed full of filter material 13, the material being preferably as rmly compacted as possible, of course, with the material filling the space between the-body 12 and the tubular member 9. When certain types of filter material are used, which have line fibers or the like which might become loose from the lter material mass and thereby be carried through the oillines, it is desirable to place a fine fabric tube around the member 9 before` the material is packed into the container to prevent line particles of filter material from enteringthe oil lines. Y

When the body is packed full, the cap 25 is placed on the` tube and pressed inwardly along the tube, which causes the material 13 in the cartridge to be further compressed, vuntil the outer surfaceV of the cap passes the annular lgroove 27 in the tube 9. Then a snap ring 32 is.

ward movement on the tube 9. vIt is to be noted that the cap 25 is preferably held in a position slightly within the body of the cartridge to insure the lter materials remaining within the cartridge. The upper edge of the hole 26 is provided with an annular oil seal 28 to prevent oil from leaking between the tube and the cover during the operation of the device.

The packed filter cartridge may then be carried and handled readily by means'of thek bail 29 provided on the cap 25, as the cap is prevented from movement out of the body of the cartridge, as stated', and the cartridge may be placed in the housing 1 of the filter by alining the rod 5 with the bushings 10--10 and sliding the cartridge into the housing. The cover 17 may then be installed and the wing nut 23 tightened to seal the housing oil tight.

With the oil inlet line and oil outlet line (not shown) connected to their respective connections on the housing 1, the device is ready for operation when oil is pumped into the housing through the oil inlet 16, under pressure, of course. Pressure is built up in the housing and oil is forced through the filter material 13 and into the chamber 15 to pass through opening O to the oil outlet. It is well knownthat when some materials get wet they lose some of the resiliency they have when dry, and thereby, the mass of filter material may not be as tightly compressed when wet as when dry, and channeling could occur. Also, if there are certain areas in the lter material where the material was not tightly packed, channeling will develop and oil will pass through the lter without being treated properly. Y

However, as soon as oil pressure is built up in my lter and oil begins to move through same from the inlet to the outlet thereof, the cap 25 begins to perform its desired function of compressing the mass of filter material to prevent channeling and maintaining the mass under compression during the entire time that oil is being pumped through the filter.

The compressing of the mass of filter material is accomplished through the oil pressure on the cap 25 which forces and tends to force the cap inwardly into the body 12 of the filter, as shown in dotted lines at 29, at all times while oil is in motion through the lter. This action is possible in the sealed container, where one might expect the oil pressure to Ybe equal everywhere in the container, because the oil is moving at ydifferent rates in the filter housing. Around the outer edges ofthe perforated body 12, the oil moves slowly as there are a great many openings through which it passes, and, only a predetermined quantity of oil may pass through the filter device in a given period of time dueto the sizeof the inlet and outlet, and the pressure at which the oil is pumped.

However, as the oil passes through the tightly packed filter material, there is resistance to its movement, and the rate of flow increases progressively because of the less space available in which the oil may ow to reach the relatively few openings 14 in the tubular member 9. As is well known, when the rate of ow of a given quantity of a fluid increases, its pressure decreases; thereby, there isprogressively less and less pressure present toward the center of the lter material to the tubular member 9, the pressure around the outer areas' or walls of the cartridge being greater, of course. p

As shown, the cap 25V is disc-like and has only the opening 26 therethrough, which opening has an oil seal 28 therein to prevent leakage between the cap and the tube 9. Thus, the entire outer area or surface 30 of the cap is acted on by the maximum oil pressure present in the filter housing,vwhi1e the inner area ofA surface 31 of the cap has progressively less pressure thereon from its outer edge toward the center thereof. An unequal pressure againstjthe i opposed sides, 30 and 31, of the cap, ob-

` viously, 'will result in the cap moving in the direction `of theA greater 'force applied tothe cap, or, inwardly with respect Vto-said cartridge body 12, as shown in dotted lines kan entire throw-away Cartridge.

l i at 33, until the `opposing pressure created by the compression of the mass of filter material equalizes the oil pressure when the cap will remain stationary, though the pressure on the mass will be maintained, of course. This movement of the cap will cause the filter material to move inwardly also and, of course, the material will move at the points of least resistance, or where the mass is most loosely packed, `thereby eliminating channeling from occurring, Y i

As an example, let us assume that the cap was in its outermost position and a direct passage, or channel, for oil developed between the body 12 and one of the openings 14 in the tubular member 9. Obviously, the moving oil would takethe path of least resistance and run rapidly through the channel or passage. Thereby, a low pressure area would be present and the higher pressure on the cap would immediately cause the cap to move inwardly to compress the mass and overcome the low pressure stato. Obviously, once the device is put into operation, the cap reaction is substantially instantaneous in obtaining a desired state of compression in the mass, and once obtained, it fis practically impossible for any undesirable condition to occur in the filter material mass.

`As may readily be seen, the device above described will the same.

When the filter material has been in use for its normal period of time, it is deemed apparent that the cartridge may be removed from the `housing 1, the cap removed from the tube, and then the old filter material may be replaced by new filter material and the device may be put back into service as above. The cost of repacking my filter is, obviously, much less than would be the cost of In addition, my filter device provides constantly efficient filtering offliquids pumped through it irrespective of humanv failure in not packing the filter material properly.

lt is to be understood that I have herein shown and described one specific embodiment of my invention, and

that my appended claims are not necessarily limited spe! cifically thereto, but should be construed as broadly as permissible in View of the prior art.

Having thus described my invention, what l claim is:

l. An oil device for filtering oils under pressure cont piising a casing having one end open, a liquid outlet opening positioned centrally and extending through the wall at the opposite end of saidl casing, and a liquid inlet opening extending through a wall of said casing; a cover member detachably secured to said open end of said casing, a liquid outlet center tube centrally positioned'within V said casing with one end of said tube ybeing secured to outer wall and a substantially cylindrical perforated inner wall connected to `one another along their bottom perimetral edges by an imperforate bottom plate, waste filtering material packed in said filter cartridge between said inner and outer walls; a freely-floatable, imperforate cover plate slidably mounted between the inner and outer walls of f said filter cartridge; a liquid seal between said cover plate and said liquid outlet tube to prevent the passage of liquid therebetween, ther outlet means of the liquid outlet `tube being smaller in number than those perforations of the inner wall of said filter cartridge with those perforations of said inner wall being smaller in number than the perforations of said outer wall of said cartridge to effect a pressure differential between that exerted on the periphery of the cartridge and the liquid outlet tube whereby such pressure differential will tend to force the slidable cover plate downwardly between therwalls of said cartridge to compress the lter material.

2. A repackable filter cartridge for use in pressure liquid filters comprising a casing having a substantially cylindrical perforated outer wall and a substantially cylindrical perforated inner wall connected to one another along their bottom perimetral edges by an imperforate bottom plate to define the casing, rpackable filtering material positioned in said casing between said inner and outer walls thereof,

a oatable imperforate cover plate slidably mounted between the inner and outer walls of said casing and a fiuid seal positioned at the top of said inner wall of said casing to prevent the `oil when the cartridge is in use from enter ing the oil outlet means of a filter except through the filter material, the perforations of the inner wall of said casing being smaller in ynumber than the perforations of said outer wallsof said casing to effect a pressure differential Asuch that when the cartridge is inv use the fiuid pressure will tend to force the cover plate downwardly to compress the filter material present in said container. v

References Cited in the file of this patent 4 UNITED STATES PATENTS Oldham as Apr. `14, 1942 2,364,240 Parry Dec. 5, 1944 2,559,133 Schultz July 3, 1951 2,614,694 Sather Y Oct. 21, 1952 

